Dental Program Admission Chances

[dk1256]

Hello!

I'm VERY interested in applying for the DMD program at UBC and have a few questions about admissions.

A bit of background on me...  I completed an undergrad degree in Business with a 3.2 GPA. I have yet to take the pre-reqs for the DMD program at UBC, as well as write the DAT and CASPER test before applying for the program. After my experiences I realized that dental is what I want to do and I'm aiming to complete the pre-reqs with good grades and complete the DAT and CASPER with high marks.

I'm afraid that with my 3.2 undergrad GPA I have no chances of getting into the program at UBC but I'm hoping that the pre-reqs and DAT turn that around. 

I'm wondering if UBC assess the pre-reqs for the program over the undergrad degree? And how much weight GPA truly has on your application? 

I have some extra curriculars related to my undergrad but none for dental. Would it be a good idea to have some dental extra cirrculars for when I apply? 

Please help! What are my chances of getting accepted? Is there any possibility at all? 

 

Thanks so much!

[Chaxon]

See you in Australia haha

[mcz]

You can find the admission stats for previous years on UBC's website. There are two steps to the admission process. For the first part they look at your GPA, DAT and CASPer scores. If you're competitive enough you get an interview. After the interview only your interview score if looked at and if you do well, you're in. Extracurriculars aren't considered at any point of the admissions process. They can be useful to incorporate into your answers during the interview if you get one but it's not necessary.

As for how much GPA matters, nobody really knows but looking at trends from previous years it seems like it used to be about 50/50 GPA and DAT. If you had a low GPA it was possible you could make up for it with a very high DAT and vice versa. But now CASPer is thrown into the mix and it's hard to say how much it's weighed. Imo, GPA and DAT should still be the focus, don't bank on doing well on CASPer to make up for things.

As for your chances, I have no idea. UBC uses percentages so I'm not sure what a 3.2 translates into. Also you need to take into consideration that they'll drop your worst year when determining your average. I don't think it makes a difference when you take your pre-reqs.

What you should do is determine your GPA in a percentage with the worst year dropped, make some comparisons to the past entrance stats and then assess from there. Keep in mind that you'll need to put in a lot of work to do well in the science pre-reqs and the DAT if you don't have a strong science background and are just now making the switch.

[dkraken01]

Also curious to know what my chances are for UBC DMD

Currently finishing up a thesis-based MSc (projected to have at least 2 publications)

DAT Scores: 21 AA/ 21 PAT/ 21 RC

GPA = 86%